:00:00. > :00:14.Today's main headlines in the South East.
:00:15. > :00:17.A six billion pounds tunnel will be built east of Gravesend
:00:18. > :00:21.When the public realise this is going on for
:00:22. > :00:25.We're live at the Dartford Crossing where traffic has only
:00:26. > :00:27.recently returned to normal after a day of chaos.
:00:28. > :00:31.He was responsible for a 40,000-tonne waste mountain in Kent.
:00:32. > :00:43.After highs of 16 degrees today, it's not going to be as warm sunny
:00:44. > :00:53.tomorrow. After the biggest
:00:54. > :00:56.consultation of its kind ever undertaken, its been announced
:00:57. > :01:00.that the new Lower Thames Crossing to ease the chronic
:01:01. > :01:02.congestion at Dartford - will be a two-mile long tunnel
:01:03. > :01:05.to the east of Gravesend. It's a huge and controversial
:01:06. > :01:07.project, The government
:01:08. > :01:12.says it will carry 4.5 million heavy goods
:01:13. > :01:15.vehicles in its first year. However, it's expected to be
:01:16. > :01:19.10 years before it's completed. Our reporter Peter Whittlesea
:01:20. > :01:24.is at the Dartford crossing now. Peter, anyone using the crossing
:01:25. > :01:40.at Dartford today will be well aware It's been total gridlock today.
:01:41. > :01:45.Journeys that normally takes 15 minutes have taken 2.5 hours.
:01:46. > :01:50.Everyone knows that this is why the government has announced for the
:01:51. > :01:53.first time in 26 years a new crossing. The traffic has got to
:01:54. > :01:57.such an extent that everyone believes they should be new crossing
:01:58. > :02:02.that people couldn't agree where that crossing should be. Today
:02:03. > :02:07.Transport Secretary Chris Grayling was late because of the traffic
:02:08. > :02:12.himself to make the announcement of whether crossing should be. Our
:02:13. > :02:16.after hour of tailbacks at the crossing on the very afternoon the
:02:17. > :02:21.Transport Secretary announced the infrastructure project that is
:02:22. > :02:31.supposed to stop all this. People who live in Dartford know that the
:02:32. > :02:34.traffic is a pain already. They want a second crossing, downstream can
:02:35. > :02:41.providers with better alternatives then piling people of this crowded
:02:42. > :02:48.stretch of motorway. But the chosen route from the M25 across the 813
:02:49. > :02:58.and under the tends at Tilbury and east of Gravesend has had opposition
:02:59. > :03:05.labelling it a crazy idea. 6000 million quid building the road that
:03:06. > :03:09.will take less than 15% of the traffic from here. This is honestly
:03:10. > :03:16.a scandal. When the public realise this is going on for another 30
:03:17. > :03:23.years. There was no rejoicing following this service, residents
:03:24. > :03:28.here say their homes will be blighted and the countryside ruined
:03:29. > :03:33.by the new crossing. I've been here ten years. They built in the fields
:03:34. > :03:39.behind me. They're building on flood plains to the river and now they are
:03:40. > :03:45.going to put another road in. Where has my country gone? Wrong place,
:03:46. > :03:51.wrong idea. When this tunnel is built, if it is, the problems at
:03:52. > :03:57.Dartford will still exist. And Marion money says that the home she
:03:58. > :04:04.has will be blighted by the new crossing. We are grade two listed.
:04:05. > :04:08.It is going to affect not only me but the whole village which is a
:04:09. > :04:17.conservation area. The Road haulage industry has backed the results. Not
:04:18. > :04:21.only will it provide 70% additional capacity on the road network it will
:04:22. > :04:27.add resilience into the road network providing an alternative route. And
:04:28. > :04:31.Dartford's MP who claims the town has suffered years of gridlock
:04:32. > :04:40.believes the new crossing. The town from being a congestion hotspot.
:04:41. > :04:44.They have no choice, there should be resilience in the system so they
:04:45. > :04:48.don't all have to funnel into Dartford to get under the Thames.
:04:49. > :04:53.The government says thousands of jobs will be created, boosting the
:04:54. > :05:00.local economy and crucially it will also reduce congestion. There are
:05:01. > :05:04.still quite a few unknowns. Will there be any legal challenges
:05:05. > :05:10.because the new crossing will go through swathes of green belt and
:05:11. > :05:15.people claim their homes will be blighted. Will there be any charge
:05:16. > :05:20.for this crossing, like there is at Dartford? How long will it take to
:05:21. > :05:25.be built? Some claims that it will be ten years if directly funded by
:05:26. > :05:31.the government, other claims it could be longer if private investors
:05:32. > :05:36.are required. Also, people who claim their homes are blighted, will they
:05:37. > :05:40.get compensation? Today, the Transport Secretary said that those
:05:41. > :05:44.directly affected by the crossing would appropriately be compensated.
:05:45. > :05:46.Two men have been convicted of sexual offences
:05:47. > :05:48.against a boy who was a pupil at Eastbourne College
:05:49. > :05:51.where they were both teachers nearly 30 years ago.
:05:52. > :05:54.Andrew Boxer, who was a history teacher, was sentenced to 15 years
:05:55. > :05:57.in prison and Eastbourne man Graham Jones who was a music teacher
:05:58. > :05:59.was sentenced to two years' imprisonment for two counts
:06:00. > :06:05.Both men will be put on the sex offenders' register.
:06:06. > :06:09.Twenty new free schools have been announced for Kent and Sussex,
:06:10. > :06:11.four of them in Medway including a primary school for children
:06:12. > :06:18.The new schools include Stone Lodge Academy in Dartford
:06:19. > :06:21.and the Flagship School in Hastings which aims to cater for around 50
:06:22. > :06:24.children between the ages of nine and sixteen
:06:25. > :06:26.with significant social or communication issues
:06:27. > :06:32.The Government has pledged to open 500 new free schools by 2020.
:06:33. > :06:35.Fresh talks are to be held between the RMT and Southern Railway
:06:36. > :06:38.in a bid to resolve the year-long dispute over staffing
:06:39. > :06:40.and driver-only operated trains, the unions have said.
:06:41. > :06:43.31 days of strike action by the RMT over changes
:06:44. > :06:46.to the role of conductors have already taken place.
:06:47. > :06:51.Discussions between the parties will resume the week after next.
:06:52. > :06:54.A man from Kent who was responsible for an illegal waste mountain
:06:55. > :06:57.that was estimated to total 40,000-tonnes
:06:58. > :07:02.In a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency,
:07:03. > :07:05.John Millen from Murston, near Sittingbourne pleaded guilty
:07:06. > :07:09.to dumping the waste at the Kent site without a permit.
:07:10. > :07:15.Standing more than ten metres high, this was John Millen's
:07:16. > :07:19.unauthorised waste storage site near Sittingbourne.
:07:20. > :07:23.Full of concrete, soil, plastic and metal.
:07:24. > :07:27.He had failed to respond to warnings and requests to clear it up
:07:28. > :07:33.Having previously pled guilty to environmental law, he arrived
:07:34. > :07:42.This is your chance to explain yourself?
:07:43. > :07:44.He said he would answer my questions after the hearing
:07:45. > :07:47.but he did not get a chance, the judge jailed him
:07:48. > :07:51.The Environment Agency says that it sends a clear message.
:07:52. > :07:53.Waste crime may not be at the forefront of everyone's
:07:54. > :07:57.minds, but it must be treated appropriately and unfortunately
:07:58. > :08:02.people decide to increase their profits by not doing that
:08:03. > :08:05.and then we will investigate and if necessary we will take
:08:06. > :08:13.This is John Millen's former site today where more than 12,000
:08:14. > :08:19.By the time the case came to the court today for sentencing,
:08:20. > :08:24.Mr Millen had managed to clear 70% of the waste on his land
:08:25. > :08:27.but the Environment Agency says the documentation for the transfer
:08:28. > :08:31.of the waste is incomplete and they don't know the whereabouts
:08:32. > :08:40.Ultimately the public faces the bill to deal with Mr Millen's mess.
:08:41. > :08:45.And the transportation and disposal of the waste, its incineration,
:08:46. > :08:48.will come at a cost that could run into six figures.
:08:49. > :08:53.The council owns the land but did not respond
:08:54. > :09:03.Tomorrow on BBC South East we have an exclusive investigation
:09:04. > :09:05.which has found young, vulnerable people in Kent and Sussex
:09:06. > :09:09.are being targeted by online adverts offering free accommodation
:09:10. > :09:16.I had no idea what I was getting into.
:09:17. > :09:21.He took me into his living room, got me drinks, and then,
:09:22. > :09:26.after that, it was straight upstairs and go for it.
:09:27. > :09:29.You can find out more about this on our breakfast bulletins
:09:30. > :09:32.and local live pages tomorrow and see the full investigation
:09:33. > :09:37.That's it from me, the national weather forecast in a moment
:09:38. > :09:46.but first let's get the picture in the South East with Nina Ridge.
:09:47. > :09:54.The sunshine took its time today but it eventually broke through lifting
:09:55. > :09:58.the temperatures. Tomorrow, a little bit more cloud but overall sticking
:09:59. > :10:04.with the dry cleaning. By the time we get to Friday, we'll see a little
:10:05. > :10:11.bit more rain around. There will be some clear spells but just like the
:10:12. > :10:18.last couple of nights it will turn a little bit chilly in the
:10:19. > :10:22.countryside. We are expecting some earlier sunshine. A little bit hit
:10:23. > :10:26.and miss through the afternoon. As we found over the last couple of
:10:27. > :10:36.days, that sunshine really makes a difference to the temperatures.
:10:37. > :10:41.Brightness might lift them up to 13-14. We will see a weakening
:10:42. > :10:50.weather front heading south-east wards. Throughout Friday it is
:10:51. > :10:56.looking very cloudy. Rain will come and go. Nothing significant but on
:10:57. > :11:00.and off throughout the day. Temperatures 12-13. Things brighten
:11:01. > :11:02.up for the rest of the Easter weekend.
:11:03. > :11:11.Brighter on Saturday but cloud again on Sunday. Here is Tomasz.
:11:12. > :11:16.Good evening. The weather in the run-up to
:11:17. > :11:25.Christmas... Easter! I got ahead of myself there! It isn't looking
:11:26. > :11:26.especially great, nor is it looking all that